The Premier Soccer League have released a statement announcing that five Premiership games will be contested during the African Nations Championship (Chan) that will be held in South Africa from January 11 to February 1 next year. According to KickOff Magazine the matches, which are likely to affect Gordon Igesund’s ability to field his strongest team involve six clubs in the shape of AmaZulu, Orlando Pirates, Mamelodi Sundowns, Supersport United, Kaizer Chiefs and Ajax Cape Town.

The tournament is sorely reserved for players who ply their trade in their country’s leagues as it aims to develop the African game starting with those that still play in the continent. It, however, does not fall on the Fifa calendar and clubs are not obliged to release players under Fifa laws. “Following discussions with various stakeholders, including the South Africa Football Association and the clubs involved in the Caf interclub tournaments, the Premier Soccer League has confirmed that there will be five Absa Premiership Fixtures scheduled during the Chan tournament in January 2014. “Due to the heavy backlog created mainly by the progression of Orlando Pirates in the Caf Champions League tournament, it was decided that some of their postponed matches will be scheduled during this period. In addition, both Kaizer Chiefs and Supersport United will be participating in Caf 2014 starting from February. It was therefor decided that their outstanding postponed matches will also be played in January to alleviate congestion,” said the PSL in a statement.